Healthfirst opens new mental health facility
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU-WAOW) - Providers all across the area are struggling to keep up with the demand for mental health resources. Wausau-based Healthfirst Network saw that need, and decided to do something about it. In September, they broke ground on a new mental health clinic. Thursay they cut the ribbon and officially op...
May 02, 2024
Wausau East Staff & Students Honor K9 Therapy Dog Badge During Retirement Ceremony
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) - Students, staff, and Wausau East High School gathered on Thursday afternoon to celebrate and honor their K9 therapy dog Badge. Badge has been working at the school with School Resource Officer Nick Stetzer for the last seven years, and the retirement ceremony included a slideshow presentation of stu...
May 02, 2024
Fanklin Pleads Not Guilty to Homicide by Delivery of Drugs
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) -- A Central Wisconsin man accused of providing the drugs that led to a fatal overdose in 2020 has pled not guilty to homicide and manufacturing or delivering designer drugs. Otha Franklin entered the plea on Thursday in Marathon County court. Investigators say he and the victim were snorting pills to...
May 02, 2024
Madison's Comedy On State Cancels Jewish Comedian Michael Rapaport's Thursday Show Due To Protests
MADISON, WI (WSAU) - A popular Madison comedy club has canceled Thursday night's sold-out show featuring a celebrity comedian. According to a post on X, which was confirmed by comedian Michael Rapaport, who is Jewish and has been a well-known actor for decades starring in popular shows and movies such as Deep Blue Sea,...
May 02, 2024
Congressman Derrick Van Orden's VETT Act Hopes To Improve Veteran's Experience In Higher Education
STEVENS POINT, WI (WSAU-WAOW) - Veteran suicide rates peak in the first two years after active service, and Congressman Derrick Van Orden believes that this is partly due to their inability to transfer to education following duty smoothly; the VETT ACT seeks to change this. "The federal government can make things ...
May 02, 2024
State Of Affairs Ep. 14 Former Lt. Gov Candidate David Varnam
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) -State of Affairs episode fourteen is now available, featuring former Wisconsin Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor David Varnam joining the program to discuss life after his campaign and issues facing the state. When speaking about the issue of abortion and the role it may play in this year'...
May 02, 2024
Stevens Point Brewery Opens New Gift Shop, Taproom
STEVENS POINT, WI (WSAU) -- The Stevens Point Brewery unveiled its new taproom and gift shop on Wednesday. The $1.1 million project adds seating for up to 99 people in two bar areas and up to 36 tap lines for beer, cider, and soda. Taproom Manager Melissa Wysocki says it also fills one of the brewery's biggest tourist ...
May 01, 2024
Mountain Bay Police Department begins operations
ROTHSCHILD, WI (WSAU-WAOW) - May 1st was the first day that Everest Metro and Rothschild Police have joined, forming the Mountain Bay Metro Police Department. It marks the end of a long process that brought them together, and now their chief says they're ready to get to work. Chief Jeremy Hunt said, "We have two ...
May 01, 2024
Former Marathon County Sheriff Employee Pleads Not Guilty to False Imprisonment Charges
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) -- A now former behind-the-scenes worker in the Marathon County Sheriff's Office entered a not guilty plea for a felony count of false imprisonment on Wednesday. Michael Evon is accused of making advances towards a female supervisor at another job, then refusing to let her leave the office until she k...
May 01, 2024
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Kronenewetter Asks Residents To Reduce Water Usage As Well Goes Through Updates
KRONENEWETTER, WI (WSAU) - Residents of Kronenwetter are being encouraged to use less water over the next week. According to a press release from the Village of Kronenwetter, residents are asked to reduce their water usage and refrain from outdoor watering from Monday, May 5, 2024, until Friday, May 10, 2024. During th...
May 01, 2024
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Update: UW-Madison Announces 34 Anti-Israel Protesters Have Been Arrested As 4 Officers Have Been Injured
MADISON, WI (WSAU) - Students at UW-Madison and UW-Madison Police, State Police, and officers from the Dane County Sheriff's Office clashed on Tuesday night as anti-Israel protests have impacted universities across the nation. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, protesters at the University of Wisconsin-Madiso...
May 01, 2024
Small pro-Palestinian protest at UW-Stevens Point
STEVENS POINT, WI (WSAU-WAOW) - On the lawn of Old Main, one of the main paths across campus at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, a couple dozen individuals join their campus counterparts in support of Palestinian liberation. Students across the Badger State have joined together in support of Palestine, and n...
Apr 30, 2024
Minnesota Man Pleads Not Guilty to Child Sexual Assault
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) -- A Minneapolis man has pled not guilty to one felony count of child sexual assault. Chue Yang was in a Marathon County courtroom on Tuesday where Judge Michael Moran also bound him over for trial. The 47-year-old is accused of forcing himself onto a child on multiple occasions. The accusations date ...
Apr 30, 2024
New Poll: Tammy Baldwin Leads Eric Hovde As Former President Trump Continues To Hold Wisconsin Lead
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) - Wisconsin's U.S. Senate race and presidential race in the state are still close as election day approaches the six-month mark. According to the latest Emerson/The Hill poll, Baldwin leads Eric Hovde by three points, which is within the poll's 2.9% margin of error, and former President Trump leads Bi...
Apr 30, 2024
Bondioli Trial Rescheduled for July
WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI (WSAU) -- A new trial date has been scheduled for a former Wisconsin Rapids High School Counselor accused of inappropriate sexual contact with a teen. Christopher Bondioli will face trial for two counts of child enticement and two counts of sexual assault of a student by school staff from July 16th...
Apr 30, 2024
O'so Brewery 5K Hopes To Raise $20,000 For May Never Forgotten Honor Flight
PLOVER, WI (WSAU-WAOW) - O'so Brewery is doing its annual 5k again this year to benefit the Never Forgotten Honor Flight, and they are currently working toward their financial goals. Mark Buttera, President of O'so Brewery, believes they can raise $20,000 for the Haydock Brewery Museum and O'so Brewery's Never Forgotte...
Apr 30, 2024
Natural Gas Proposal Voted Forward in Ringle
RINGLE, WI (WSAU-WAOW) - The Town of Ringle's Planning and Zoning Commission has given preliminary approval to a proposal to bring a natural gas capture facility to the Marathon County Landfill. Representatives from Viridi Energy answered several questions about the project as dozens filled the Ringle Municipal Center ...
Apr 30, 2024
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Governor Evers' "Pothole Patrol" Stops in Stevens Point
STEVENS POINT, WI (WSAU) -- Governor Tony Evers kicked off his 2024 pothole patrol tour in Stevens Point. The Democrat put on the yellow vest and wielded a rake as he worked alongside street crews to fill a large pothole in a residential neighborhood on Blaine Street. He said the tour represents his commitment to Wisco...
Apr 29, 2024
Wausau Property Values Increase Sharply During Reassement
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) -- The City of Wausau has completed property reassessments, and those who own homes or businesses should expect a significant increase. According to a news release from Mayor Doug Diny the average home value went up by 50%, with the biggest increases expected for those who own rental, older, or modera...
Apr 29, 2024
Tomahawk Man Arrested on Suspicion of His 3rd Underage Consumption
TOMAHAWK, WI (WSAU) -- A 19-year-old Tomahawk man was jailed last weekend on suspicion of his 3rd underage consumption violation. Officers say the unidentified man was pulled over for speeding on Saturday. When officers made contact with him, they immediately noticed signs of impairment. The driver refused a breath tes...
Apr 29, 2024
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Marshfield Man Out Thousands After Kidnapping Scam
MARSHFIELD, WI (WSAU) -- A Marshfield man lost over $1,600 after falling victim to a kidnapping scam. Police say the man was communicating with a woman who said she was the victim of a kidnapping. The man then sent $1,690 to the person through a mobile payment application. No further details about the incident were pro...
Apr 29, 2024
UW-Madison Students Raise Pro-Palestine Encampment Despite University's Camping Warnings
MADISON, WI (WSAU) - Students at UW-Madison have joined other U.S. universities, such as Columbia and Yale, in setting up pro-Palestine encampments to draw attention to claims of genocide occurring in the Gaza Strip following terrorist organization Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel last fall. According to the Milw...
Apr 29, 2024
Mayors Monday: Wisconsin Rapids' Matt Zacher
WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI (WSAU) -- Wisconsin Rapids Mayor Matt Zacher has barely moved into his new office. But, that's actually how he likes it. The new Mayor says he doesn't want to be known as the type of leader who stays hidden away in his third-floor office at City Hall. He'd rather be out making himself available to ...
Apr 29, 2024
Madison Man Accused of Killing 20-Month-Old Girl Found Guilty
Wausau WI, (WSAU)-- A 25-year-old man from Madison was found guilty on Friday. He has been convicted of the sexual assault and homicide of a 20-month-old girl, along with the abuse of the child's mother, who was the man's girlfriend at the time. A jury found Marshawn D. Giles guilty of 15 charges on Friday. Giles orig...
Apr 28, 2024
Monk Botanical Gardens Announces Name Change
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) -- Leaders at Monk Botanical Gardens in Wausau have announced a new name and logo in light of recent growth. As of Friday, the area will be known as Wausau Botanical Gardens. The garden and nature preserve had been named for Robert W. Monk, who helped to start the garden by donating 21 acres of land t...
Apr 27, 2024